Archive for September, 2011

Asked Arthur to go with me into the wild again to try to find a view of the railroad bridge that I guess I’m going to have to be in a boat to get. Arthur didn’t have to save anybody this time (chuckle).

Some how Vernon and I attended I believe the first 2nd Street Festival (year unknown).

“In its heyday — generally considered to be the 1940s and’50s — Second Street was part of the “chitlin circuit,” a string of venues up and down the East Coast and throughout the South that were safe and acceptable for black musicians, comedians and other entertainers to perform at during the age of racial segregation.
There were speakeasies, nip joints, dance halls, hotel lobbies, ballrooms and clubs with names like Black and Tan, Waltz Dream and Happy Land .
There were black theaters such as The Globe and Hippodrome and black hotels. There was even a dance hall atop A.D. Price Funeral Home.
Cab Calloway, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald were among the nationally known artists to perform in Jackson Ward.”

This is pretty much how I have been feeling lately. The Blue series was started to keep me from expressing in writing what I have been feeling, which my wife says would just be considered sour grapes. So in the continuing in the spirit of life presenting you with lemons, you make lemonade.

I’m somewhat limited to vista’s but never tire of this great building near by.

The sunset popped for about a minute, but didn’t really set up for it, auto just didn’t cut it for what I was really seeing.

Saw a great movie about Bill Bowman’s career in broadcasting and his character as the Bowman Body for Shock Theater in the 70’s. Not only was this film full of fun memory’s and some pretty good belly laughs it had a lot of unknown gems. Having Bill there was icing on the cake. My wife loves horror films more than I and sends Bill her regards. Everybody seems to love this man dearly and I hope more people get to see this film. I hope the Saturday matinee at the BYRD made his day. His parting words reflected his great love for broadcasting “Keep on watching TV!”

Wonderful picture of my grandmother as a young girl that passed away before our births and was Aunt Rea’s sister. This may be my Aunt Mildred my dad’s sister we were told, which would have dated this early 1920’s. The photograph looks more 19th century to me, whatever the beauty’s in our family are endless no matter who they were. Here’s another useful link for the family : https://otway.wordpress.com/2008/10/03/o1/

Mom would have been 97 today. I have some beautiful pictures of her through the years. This one was taken the same day as the picture of her riding the bear photograph, which is a classic. Notice the cigars for a nickel sign which help me date the photo.

“Stanford Newman said that cigars actually did retail for around five cents in the 1930s during the Great Depression; they were back up to 10 cents apiece again following the Second World War where we started to see brand names like Philly’s, White Owls and Dutch Masters.”